Jeongeun Lee6 battled to claim her first major championship in a week embroiled in controversy

US Women’s Open report: What happened in Charleston?

We told you to remember the name (and number), now Jeongeun Lee6 is a major champion.

Lee6 battled to a final round of 70 to hold off the challenges of the likes Celine Boutier and Lexi Thompson and claim the US Women’s Open.

The South Korean was largely consistent all day and only made bogeys at the 1st, 16th and 18th. Four birdies, including three on the back nine saw her finish under par and seal a two-shot victory.

The final day proved to be a tough one for scoring with the majority of the field failing to break par, which emphasises Lee6’s achievement.

The 23-year-old has enjoyed a terrific rookie year on the LPGA and it has been a case of when, not if, she would win her first title.

Not only is Lee6 now the champion of arguably the biggest tournament in women’s golf, but she also walks away with a $1 million – the largest prize fund handed to a major champion on the women’s circuit.

Boutier, who was just one shot behind on the 18th tee, showed once more that golf can be a cruel game as she double-bogeyed the last, adding to the double-bogey she made on the 1st.

Thompson looked to be in with a shout of victory after three rounds of supreme ball striking, but it was not to be and a final round of 2-over saw her take a share of 2nd place.

US Women’s Open report: Talking points

It seems a massive shame that the biggest talking point of the week was some idiotic comments from a coach rather than the spectacular golf on show, but here we are in 2019 and this is still happening…

Hank Haney, best known for being Tiger Woods’ coach who now presents a radio show on SiriusXM, was at the centre of controversy early last week due to some comments that he made on air in relation to the LPGA:

The likes of Michelle Wie and Annika Sorenstam condemned his behaviour:

While the LPGA had their say:

Even Tiger had his say, giving this damning response:

“He deserved it.”

Haney did post an apology of sorts, but we’re not sure anyone’s buying it…

**

Slow play has been one of the hottest topics of debate in golf for some time now, and unfortunately there was another incident surrounding the issue at this week’s major.

In Saturday’s third round, there were plenty of groups that could easily have been put on the clock, notably the final two groups of the day, who are said to have taken around three hours to complete their opening nine holes.

However, this wasn’t the case, and despite what seemed to be a field-wide issue, just one golfer was officially put on the clock.

Andrea Lee was struggling with her game, despite starting the day 5 shots off the top and things got worse when she was put on the clock.

Lee, who still holds amateur status was deemed to have continued playing slow and was handed a one-shot penalty, contributing to a dismal round of 8-over.

Granted, it is good to see a governing body taking action and punishing a player for slow play, but, the USGA didn’t exactly cover themselves in glory when considering the speed of the rest of the field.

It will be interesting to see if there is any further fall out from this ruling.

Joe Hughes

Tour editor covering men's golf, women's golf and anything else that involves the word golf, really. The talk is far better than the game, but the work has begun to change that.

Handicap: 20

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